Outokumpu, a leading manufacturer of stainless steel, with operations in North and South America, has entered into a supplier agreement with contractor Habtoor Leighton Group (HLG) to supply stainless steel dowel bars for PRPS 3 and Big Blue mega reservoir projects in Qatar. The bars will be supplied in grade Supra 316L/4404 to be used in the expansion joints for rafts and walls of the reservoirs.
The new projects will include five primary reservoir and pumping station (PRPS) packages with a capacity of 100 million gallons each, making them the largest reinforced concrete reservoirs in the world. The objective of the project is to provide seven days’ potable water storage in new reservoirs, combined with the existing and future secondary reservoirs, to preserve Qatar’s water quality.
Outokumpu stainless steel dowel bars are used in expansion joints for the movement of lateral loads and manage stress within the joint. The dowels are debonded and movements allowed by specially designed sleeves by Big Blue which includes uPVC pipe, compressible filler and end cap. The one half of the dowel is embedded into concrete, while the other half is debonded to allow the movement at the expansion joints.